Nick is the Minister for the North East and Government Chief Whip.

Nick was first elected as a Member of Parliament in 1983. He represented Newcastle-upon-Tyne East until 1997, when boundary changes saw him elected as MP for the new constituency of Newcastle East and Wallsend.

In Government, Nick was first appointed as the Government’s Chief Whip before becoming Secretary of State for Agriculture and Minister for Work. In opposition, he held the posts of Deputy Chief Whip, Deputy to Margaret Beckett as Shadow Leader of the Commons and he was the frontbench spokesperson for Health, Legal and Treasury and Economic Affairs.

In October 2008, Nick was reappointed as Government Chief Whip for a second time. City of Durham MP, Dr Roberta Blackman-Woods was appointed as the Regional Minister's Assistant.

The Regional Minister's pages on the Government Office North East Website >

Bevereley Hughes MP is the Regional Minister for the North West Region, which covers the Cumbrian part of the Labour North area.

The North West Regional Minister's website on Government Office for The North West website>